Chapter - 11

"…Nn."

Emerging through a bright haze, Stella gradually woke up, and what filled her vision as she opened her eyes was a somewhat low ceiling and―Kurono sitting beside Stella's bed while smoking a cigarette.

"Are you awake, Vermillion?"

"Madam Chairman… where am I?"

"Your room. You collapsed from the fatigue of getting hit by a Device in illusionary form. It's not something we should use an iPS capsule or call a doctor for, so I had you rest here."

Saying that, Kurono released a puff of smoke from lipstick-coated lips.

…Doesn't the student dormitory prohibit smoking?

But Stella wasn't really in the mood to say so out loud.

"So that means… it wasn't all a dream?"

With that realization, her feelings turned gloomy. It seemed her hope wouldn't come true. She'd been beaten, and beaten so completely she could make no excuse for her loss.

"…Haa. I thought I had forgotten it long ago. Losing… certainly does feel like this."

"Well, you shouldn't let it bother you that much. Handicaps aside, Kurogane is a guy who even won a straight fight against me. He's not someone you could defeat as you are now."

"Winning against 'World Clock', the former top third in the world… what the heck is that?"

There was a limit to being a monster.

…No, she couldn't say that. Defeating her inside a single minute was the apex of willpower, something normally unthinkable. What kind of dreadful resolve and determination would someone need to try it? That way of fighting was indeed like a shura. It could be called inhuman.

Ah.

Come to think of it, what happened to that fellow after he used himself up?

"Madam Chairman. That guy, is he alright?"

Kurono lightly nodded at her question.

"He's fine. He was much more seriously injured than you, but it's not so bad that his life was in danger."

After saying so, she looked at the upper level of the bunk bed.

Stella crawled out of the lower bed and looked up to see a pale-faced Ikki lying above in an exercise shirt. His vitality seemed so low that if Stella hadn't heard faint breathing, she'd surely mistake him for a corpse.

"Well, he had enough spare energy to return to his room and change his clothes. If he couldn't leave that much in reserve, the aftermath of his technique would be far too harsh. Kurogane exercised some foresight, at least."

"I don't think that really counts as spare energy."

Ittou Shura was a Noble Art that brought out one's full power while ignoring survival instincts. The user wouldn't even be able to breathe after just one minute of use, so Ikki couldn't use it to fight for long. If he didn't win within that minute, breakdown was unavoidable―a harshly self-destructive tactic. But in mastering such a fickle technique, this boy showed he could conquer even himself.

"Madam Chairman, who exactly is this guy?"

"What do you mean?"

"Please don't play dumb! It's definitely not normal to move so fast my eyes can't even keep up! Could he be one of them? One of those Japanese ninjas!?"

"No, you're totally off…."

"In any case, it's strange for someone like him to be an F-Rank and repeat a year! Please explain to me exactly what's going on!"

"Even if you say that, him being an F-Rank is actually a valid judgment, because the ranking system evaluates Blazer abilities. Mundane skills like swordsmanship, physical fitness, and martial arts aren't included in that evaluation, since such things would probably be ineffective against Noble Arts."

Indeed, mundane skills were nothing compared to overwhelming supernatural power. For example, suppose there existed a master swordsman who could even cut through steel. How would he fight against Stella's flaming sword? His mastery was useless; he could only burn to ashes. Mundane skills were only useful to Blazers when fighting those with equal magic ability.

"That's the general public's way of thinking these days. To put it simply, no system exists to evaluate Kurogane appropriately. And Kurogane, who only excels in physical skills… well, he could only be called the worst. It's rare for someone to have circumstances this bad. If you're a prodigy who appears only once a decade, then he's a dunce that appears only once a decade too. Nothing can really be done about that. You should also understand after facing him directly, since his full-powered strike couldn't harm you even while you were defenseless."

"…Well, there's that… but you haven't explained why he was made to repeat."

"Haven't I?"

"I'm royalty. I know how much countries value strong Blazers, and an academy responsible for training mage-knights should think the same. Not having good evaluations shouldn't be enough reason to make him repeat a year."

Because insurgent organizations had recently started to appear, countries were always promoting the development of strong knights. No reason was enough to undercut that priority.

To Stella's argument, Kurono gave a bitter smile and sighed as though in agreement.

"Haha… well well. You really struck where it hurts."

"As I thought, there's some other reason, isn't there?"

"Yeah, his marks not being sufficient is just the school administration's pretense."

"Pretense…?"

"Indeed. Vermillion, doesn't the name Kurogane ring a bell?"

"There's no way I would know something so plebeian―"

She shouldn't know. That's what she wanted to say, but one person with that surname appeared in her mind.

"Wait, no way… Samurai Ryouma?"

"Exactly. The hero who guided Japan to victory in the Second World War, Samurai Ryouma. His real name is Ryouma Kurogane, and he's Ikki Kurogane's great-grandfather. Even without him, the Kurogane clan is a distinguished family dating from the Meiji era that has produced superior Blazers for generations, and holds strong clout in mage-knight society. That clan put direct pressure on Hagun Academy and said, 'Don't let Ikki Kurogane, the reprobate who fled the Kurogane house, graduate.'"

"Why did they do something like that?"

"To uphold their distinguished family's prestige. If an outlier like an F-Rank was born from their lineage, it would tarnish their name. They probably thought something like that, since knights today emphasize rank more than anything else. The previous academy chairman complied, and started a ridiculous rule about minimum requirements to take combat lessons. In that way, he excluded Kurogane, and repeating the year is the result of that unfairness."

The moment Stella heard that harsh story, she felt an unimaginable resentment deep within her chest.

"Was that something a parent or a teacher should do!?"

"It's regrettable, but there are adults like that in the world. Of course, I have no intention of condoning their actions. After taking up this post, I thoroughly purged those who had a hand in such garbage… but it won't return the year that Kurogane lost. Still, that boy didn't despair. Despite being targeted by his family, treated unfairly, deprived of opportunities, and even derided as trash, he didn't stop believing in his own value. Not seeing prodigies as insurmountable, not running away from his inadequacies. After struggling through all the injustice, he reached the pinnacle where he stands now. By having faith in himself and his values, he wagered all his worth and finally achieved that 'invincible one minute', which can even defeat the Crimson Princess who's called a once-in-a-decade prodigy. Honestly, he's quite special."

Believing in oneself and in one's value, no matter how hopeless the situation. Stella knew very well how hard that was, understood so well it hurt. But fortunately, she had talent. She believed that if she mastered the flames dwelling inside her, her power would help her country greatly. That was why she could push herself onward.

What about Ikki? He really had nothing at all. His had scant magic power, and his Noble Art, a Blazer's trump card, was only the doubling of physical strength. That was painful enough, but the adults around Ikki did all they could to block his way as well. How did he still keep faith and believe in himself?

"Just… just what is pushing him to go that far…!?"

"Who knows? It's not something you'd understand without asking Kurogane himself. I just have a few expectations. Whether he'll really take the summit of the Seven Stars, stuff like that."

Kurono pressed her cigarette into her portable ashtray and once again asked Stella.

"Vermillion. When you came to my office this morning to greet me, do you remember how you replied to my question, 'Why did you come here to study abroad?'"

"Yes. Because if I stayed in that country… I would eventually forget how to aim higher."

That was Stella's reason for leaving Vermillion: the people of her land, of their own accord, were trapping her in the cage of "prodigy". That she could do anything, and wouldn't lose to anyone. If Stella stayed among them, she might've started to believe them. She'd become arrogant, and her heart would rot. Her arrogance would build without foundation, and her will to improve would be chipped away. It had frightened her more than anything, so much that she couldn't let herself remain there any longer. She had to become a much stronger knight to protect her beloved Vermillion Empire.

That was Stella's reason for coming to Japan: to seek out people stronger than herself. To fight strong knights, defeat them, and become the Seven Stars Sword King.

"In that case, Stella Vermillion, try chasing after Kurogane for a year. I'm sure it won't be a waste of time."

At Kurono's forceful air, Stella couldn't give a definite answer.

"I still… don't get it. I still don't know anything about him beyond your words…."

"Well that's true too, I guess."

It wasn't clear whether Stella's response had satisfied Kurono, but Kurono walked towards the exit after giving a nod.

Turning the knob, she opened the door.

"Then you should learn who he is on your own. Like I said, Ittou Shura is a grand technique that can only be used once a day, not holding back the slightest bit of magic, strength, or willpower. And it's an ability that, like a charging horse, can't be stopped partway. He shouldn't wake up for a while… well, hopefully he's not actually dead, just looks like it. He'll get up sooner or later, and if you still don't want to live with him after testing my words, tell me. I'll prepare a special single-person VIP room for you."

After saying that, Kurono left.